Page 3 of A Song for the Dead

Kane thought for a beat. “Send Rowley back when he arrives. He’s right behind me.”

“You got it.” Wendy hurried away.

In three strides, Kane had gripped the man’s arm and gave him a tight smile. “Deputy Kane, would you mind coming with me? I think we need a little chat.”

“What?” The man in green glared at him. “I’ll miss my place in the line.”

Kane tightened his grip. “That’s the least of your problems.” He pulled him from the line and escorted him behind the counter and then pushed him into Susie’s office. “Hand me the phone.”

“Why?” The man slid up the extension and was about to turn off the phone when Kane grabbed it.

The phone was recording and Kane turned it to face them. “I have just taken this phone from… Your name, sir?”

“Jacob Seemly.” The man glared into the camera. “I haven’t done anything wrong. This is police brutality.”

Shaking his head, Kane turned to him. “Ah, well, we’ll let the courts decide, as you have it all on file.” He stopped the recording and went into the video files and then played back the last recording. He held it up to Seemly. “You know, I figure it takes a new form of low to record up a kid’s skirt. Apart from that, it’s against the law to record a visual image of the intimate parts of a person in a public place without their knowledge. This girl and the other woman you recorded have a reasonable expectation of privacy.” He ran through the settings on the phone and removed the password. “You’ll be held in custody until we peruse the footage on your phone.” He turned him around and cuffed him with zip ties.

“You can’t arrest me.” Seemly glared at him. “I haven’t had lunch.”

Biting back the need to teach him a lesson about respecting women, old-school, Kane stared at him. “Well, seems to me you’ll just have to wait until I’ve had mine. If I remember, I’ll bring you back something when I’m done.”

The next moment, Rowley stuck his head around the door. Kane nodded to him. “Sorry to add another burden to your day. Can you grab Rio and take Jacob Seemly back to the office? Lock him in a cell and bag the phone as evidence. That’s all and then come back here for a meal and I’ll explain everything.”

“Sure.” Rowley grabbed Seemly and hauled him out the door.

Shaking his head in disbelief, he made his way back to the sheriff’s table. He removed his jacket and gloves and sat down. “You know, Jenna, we get some strange people in this town, but this one beats all.”

He gave her a rundown of the situation. “We’ll deal with him back at the office.”

“This has been happening all over for years, men with mirrors on their shoes, planting cameras in changing rooms. It’s just a new version of a Peeping Tom, I guess.” Jenna sipped coffee and stared at him. “There are some very weird people on this earth. I don’t think there’s a fetish that hasn’t been covered by someone. Seems to me the laws aren’t keeping up with all the gadgets. The more innovative and amazing devices that come onto the market the harder our job becomes—AI, for example—how long will it take people to twist that software into criminal behavior? I’m waiting for one of those robot vacuum cleaners to become pest exterminators as well.” She giggled. “Next, people will be dragged from their beds and sucked into oblivion.”

Rubbing a hand down his face, Kane sighed. “At least we’ll have the killer. No trial, just straight down to the auto crusher. Life will be a breeze.” He smiled at her. “We might even get a vacation.”

“I live in hope.” Jenna squeezed his hand. “From now on, we must take vacations. We have a son to consider. He’s never seen the beach, and we have so much to show him. I want him to have everything he wants in life.”

Kane shook his head. “If you do that, he’ll end up a spoiled brat.” He took her hand. “Yes of course, we raise him with vacations and all the trimmings, but I want him to appreciate the value of things too. Helping out with chores is part of being a family.” He sighed. “He likes helping with the horses and it’s something I want to encourage. If he wants to help out in the kitchen or help around the house, we should encourage that too. It’s all part of his education, so he knows how to do things to survive when he grows.”

“I’m guessing you’ll want to teach him how to fight.” Jenna bit her bottom lip. “How to shoot and kill?”

Incredulous that Jenna should be concerned about this subject when Tauri was only four years old, he smiled at her. “That’s a long ways away, Jenna, and we can decide at the time. For now, riding and swimming are priorities. It’s obvious he’s going to be big like me. Have you seen the size of his hands and feet? They’re the same as mine when I was a kid at his age and he’s so much bigger than any of his own age already. Sometimes being big can be a problem. People pick fights just to prove a point, like they need to prove they’re stronger than you are. It happened to me many a time and still does, so yeah, when the time comes, I’ll teach him how to defend himself. How far he goes depends on him. It takes dedication to become an expert in hand-to-hand combat. It also takes self-control to know when to use it… All this is part of any training I’d want to give him.” He sighed. “He’ll discover I was in the military and may want to join. I don’t want him to become a sniper because it’s not a life I’d recommend to anyone, but again, that would be his choice.”

“You’re not answering my question, Dave.” Jenna looked at him. “He wants to be just like you, and I never want to see him in combat mode, not ever.”

Leaning back in his chair, Kane stared at her for long seconds. “That’s not something my father taught me, Jenna, and not something I’ll teach him. I will teach him how to shoot when the time comes, and from now on, he’ll understand the danger of firearms. You know darn well having knowledge and respect of firearms in Montana is common sense.” He paused as Susie delivered their meal and gave a plate of leftovers to Duke. “Thanks, Susie.” He looked back at Jenna. “If he follows us into law enforcement, yeah, we’ll teach him everything he needs to know. We’ll want him to be able to deal with any situation, and you can be sure Blackhawk will be teaching him how to survive in the forest as well.” He squeezed her hand. “You’ll teach him compassion, Jenna. One thing is for sure: he’ll never be short on love.” He bit into his burger, chewed, and swallowed. “I know being a parent is a big responsibility, but can’t we just enjoy raising him before we get into worrying about the future?”

“One day at a time, right?” Jenna smiled at him. “Well, it seems to have worked out just fine so far.” She sighed. “With us and with him. It’s like waking up to sunshine even on a rainy day. I still can’t believe he’s ours.”

Kane chuckled. “You’re worrying about years ahead and I’m concerned about how we’re going to explain Halloween. The stories are a little different behind the festival for us and Blackhawk’s people.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much just yet.” Jenna laughed. “Once we take him trick-or-treating, all he’ll be thinking about is the candy.”

FOUR

Jenna had just eaten the last forkful of pumpkin pie when her phone buzzed. It was their receptionist, Maggie. “I’m at Aunt Betty’s, with everyone. What’s the problem?”

“I just had a call from a young woman, Clara Finch, she lives in an apartment on Elm. Her friend, Freya Richardson, has been missing all weekend and she’s worried about her. She asked the landlord to open the door to see if her friend was okay and says the bathroom is covered in blood. No sign of her friend.”

Staring at Kane, she sucked in a deep breath. Here it was, the Halloween she’d hoped wouldn’t occur this year.Only in Black Rock Falls.“Okay, send me the details and we’ll head out there now.” She disconnected and explained the call to her deputies.

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